Teamwork
by tuck
Summary: Babe fic. Just one of a possible series of shorts of Steph and the Rangeman team


Steph was lost in thought.

"Ready to **go do that voodoo that you do so well**?"

"What?" Steph turned towards Lester. He was sitting in the driver's seat of the SUV with one hand on the steering wheel and the other texting on his cell. He shut the phone and turned to meet her gaze.

"We're all set. Ready?" Lester's gaze left her eyes and scanned her body. He paused at her chest for a moment then continued down.

"What was that about voodoo?" Lester smirked as he ran his eyes back up her body, eventually meeting her gaze once more.

"You're bewitching, Beautiful." He laughed. "Bewitchingly beautiful, actually. Watching you work a skip is magical. You enter and cast a spell on the guy. Get him all worked up and excited. Then, once he's out the door. Wham!" Lester gave her an evil grin. "We slap on the cuffs, and he knows he's been truly cursed."

Steph rolled her eyes. "That's a little over dramatic, don't you think?"

Lester nodded. "Maybe a little, but Cal said there was a problem out back and I'm waiting for him to give the all clear. I was stalling." He paused. "Though what I said is mostly true."

Steph narrowed her eyes at Lester. "It's not magic! It takes some effort to look this slutty." Lester smirked and gave her legs an appreciative scan. "And, other than my appearance, there's no real planning I can do before hand. It's more like a high wire balancing act, with a pool of sharks waiting below." She paused. He tilted his head up and grinned at her. Steph saw something in his eyes. "You're taunting me, riling me up on purpose! Why?"

Lester switched the cell phone to his other hand. He took Steph's hand and smiled. "I'm just trying to keep you in the zone." He squeezed her hand. "We're still waiting on Cal; I need you at your best. You're right. We give you information on the skip, a wire, and all the backup support possible. Despite his file, we don't always know how a skip is going to react."

Lester's cell chirped. He opened the cell and glanced at the screen. He looked up at Steph. "You've got good instincts. When you listen to them, you do well. I've been watching you for a while now." Lester smiled and brought her palm up for a kiss. "What can I say? I enjoy my work." Steph rolled her eyes. He released her hand and began texting on the cell. "I've watched how you relate and react to others. And I know the methods of bringing out your "A" game. One of which, is to put you on the defensive, coax out the Jersey girl attitude and then turn you loose."

Steph knew he had her there. When she first began chasing skips, she often felt pitiful and clueless. It didn't take much for her to doubt herself then. But eight months of training and exercise had done wonders for her mind and body. She was still impulsive at times, but was much more confident in herself. And she now had little tolerance for those who doubted her ability to do her job.

Lester spoke into his mic, "Line-up change. Hal, make your way to the front; I'll follow her in and then out when she's got him. The back is still her primary exit. We're on in five."

Steph gave Lester an expectant look. "What happened? And what's with the texting?"

Lester shut the cell and clipped it to his belt. "Cal's cleared the back, a few drunks were loitering. Brett is still behind the bar; make sure you order from him." Lester reached into the backseat and grabbed a Phillies hat and a black sweatshirt. He took off his headset and his Rangeman windbreaker. He put on the sweatshirt and the hat, and then opened the console to get an earpiece.

Steph cleared her throat and glared at him. "Why the change?"

Lester put the earpiece in and turned towards her. "I've changed equipment, everyone check in." He winked at Steph. "Ok, we're good. Let's roll." Lester got out and came around to Steph's door. She crossed her arms and continued to glare as he opened her door. He offered his hand, but she refused to budge. "Come on, Beautiful."

"Not until you answer me, why the change?" Steph knew the skip could wait a few more minutes. If something had caused a change, she wasn't moving until she knew the reason.

Lester put one hand on the roof of the SUV and leaned in close. "Back it up ten." He then made a throat slitting gesture and pointed at her chest. Steph looked down at her cleavage and then back at Lester. He gestured at his earpiece.

"What-"

Lester put a finger to her lips, and gave her an exasperated look. Finally realizing he wanted her to turn off her mic; she reached into her bra and switched it off.

"What is going on?"

Lester sighed. "Tank. He's been texting me for the last 5 minutes. He called you earlier, right?"

Steph tried to hide her disappointment. She was hoping that it was Ranger on Lester's cell. He had been in the wind for over a week. Though she would have been pissed that he was texting Lester instead of her, she would be relieved to know he was doing ok, or possibly, on his way home to her. "Yeah. Tank called. Lula actually did most of the talking, seems that stomach virus hit him fast and hard. She said you'd be running the show, and Tank wanted to be sure I was still up for it. I told them we'd be fine, and Lula said he wants me on the phone the minute I'm out safely."

Lester nodded. "Tank wanted to cancel. I told him he was in no condition to be giving orders, and that I'd take Hal and Cal for extra backup. He knew you'd take my side, so he told Hal to update him every 10 minutes."

Steph shrugged. "So, what's the problem?"

"Hal. Tank told him to pick you up at 9:30, wait out front with you, and then send you in once I give the signal. Apparently Tank had the control room patch his cell into our frequency, and he realized Hal was inside and I was out with you. Tank demanded I follow you in, so the change was made. Hal's never worked a distraction before. With Ranger gone, Tank's reluctant to take any chances."

"Ok. But why didn't Hal pick me up tonight in the first place?"

"Cal started busting his ass. Told him how lucky he was, getting to drive you here. The others joined in too. Hal was taking it rather well, until I handed him the microphone." Lester smirked. "I reminded him to make sure it's on before you went in. Some suggestions were made as to the best way to test your mic, and Hal turned bright red. I offered to share their suggestions with Ranger and then it was decided that I should escort you."

Steph laughed and shook her head. "Like you haven't suggested worse, right in front of Ranger even."

Lester grinned. "Being a core team member has its privileges. You good to go now?

Steph nodded. "Yep. One big, tall, and ugly skip, coming right up."

Lester took Steph's hand and helped her out of the SUV. As she paused to straighten her skirt, she caught Lester giving her an evil grin. "What?"

Lester stepped closer to her and smirked. "Need to test the mic." He reached out and Steph slapped his hand away. He chuckled and turned so he could scan the parking lot.

She reached into her bra and turned the mic back on. "Ok, guys. I think we're finally ready."

"Everyone's set. I'm only giving you a two minute head start." Lester flipped open his cell. "Lula says, "Go get 'em skinny white girl!"

"Tell her I'll be calling soon." Steph walked past Lester and across the lot. As she reached the entrance, Hal stepped out and held the door open for her. She gave him a wink and walked inside.


End file.
